From Patanjali's perspective in his Yoga Sutras, there is ultimately one problem in life; not perceiving the difference between the transparent, luminous and reflective quality (guna) of the mind with its perceptual field known as sattva, and my true nature as "I"...
When we talk about integrating Yoga and Buddhism, we must first be clear about what we mean. In the modern world, Yoga is often reduced to asana or its physical side. Buddhism is reduced to meditation, which many Buddhist groups emphasize. Yet Yoga has its meditation...
In his Yoga Sutras, Patanjali says: “Tapah Svadhyayesvara Pranidhanani Kriyah Yogah.” Sri Gurudev Swami Satchidananda translates this as: “Accepting pain as help for purification, study of spiritual books, and surrender to the Supreme Being constitute Yoga in...
Nischala Devi’s teachings reflect a heart-centered perspective on spirituality and scripture. Her message that we are born divine is never more evident than in her book, The Secret Power of Yoga: A Woman’s Guide to the Heart and Spirit of the Yoga Sutras. In this...
When the word Yoga is mentioned, most people immediately think of some physical postures for relaxing and limbering up the body. This is one aspect of the Yogic science, but actually only a very small part and relatively recent in development. The physical Yoga, or...
The teachings of Raja Yoga are a golden key to unlock all health, happiness, peace, and joy. Everyone, everything, in the creation wants to be happy. If you put a plant in the shade, its leaves will turn toward the sun, because the plant wants to be happy. Place a...
Yoga asanas… are they as painful as they sometimes look? ... And why do we have to do them anyway? My first introduction to Yoga asanas came as a child, back in the 1970s. At that time there was a popular American television show called “That’s Incredible”… a...
Although Yoga is formally a system of liberation, it can be employed to teach skills of emotional regulation. In this article, Dr. Richard Panico bridges the gap between Yoga-based psychology and western science that offers a four-part system of emotional regulation,...
In this article, Srinivasan, a senior disciple of Sri Swami Vishnu-devananda (who was a brother monk of Sri Swami Satchidananda), gives us a beautiful overview of the subject matter of our special section from the yogic perspective. Through our study and sincere...
Emotions are part of the mind and are one part of its functioning. According to Raja Yoga, there are several different ways the mind functions: the analytic mind, the feeling mind, the thinking mind and the desiring mind. Some people think if you are a big yogi, you...
In the Yoga Sutras, Patanjali lays out an eight-limbed plan for liberation called Raja Yoga. The first limb is called yama, which means restraint and includes five ethical restrictions: ahimsa (non-harming), satya (truthfulness), asteya (nonstealing), brahmacharya...
Dr. David Frawley is regarded as one of the world’s foremost experts on Ayurveda, Yoga and Vedic Studies. In this article, he offers an overview of the relationship between the teachings of Yoga and the Bhagavad Gita. He also discusses the Gita’s teaching of Yoga as...
Everyone wants to be happy, but the happiness we seek is elusive. Our lives are spent seeking happiness through possessions, positions, relationships; even our addictions are a misguided search for happiness. And what do we find? Generally, we get a little happiness...
Sri Swami Satchidananda was one of the earliest teachers of Raja Yoga in the West. On November 21, 1966, in New York, he lectured on this topic and answered these questions about the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. The second sutra gives the aim of Yoga in a nutshell:...
Dr. David Frawley is regarded as one of the world's foremost experts on Ayurveda, Yoga. and Vedic Studies. In this article, he discusses how the eight limbs of Yoga can be used for healing both body and mind in a complete and integrated Yoga and Ayurveda Therapy...